Among the investigations, commissioned by the Vatican, lies the credibility of the alleged apparitions of Our Lady, in the town of Medjugorje. 31 years ago, a group of seven people, said it physically saw the Virgin Mary. Since then, other claims have followed, drawing thousands of people to this town in Bosnia. Since 2010, Benedict XVI established a Vatican commission, made up 17 experts, to look into the alleged apparitions and give an official explanation. The commission's president is Italian Cardinal Camillo Ruini, who says he expects a conclusion soon.

Thirty years ago, on June 24, 1981, the Virgin Mary supposedly began appearing to six young people in a small village called Medjugorje in Bosnia Herzegovina. Thus began of one of the most controversial phenomenons in recent memory that turned this tiny village into one of the most visited places in Europe. More than one million visit Medjugorje every year.